First Round Thoughts : Winners, Losers and the In Betweeners

Looking at the first 6 picks there is nothing to argue. One could potentially try to argue that the Redskins
should have taken Okung, but it is clear they seem to think Williams is a better fit for their scheme.

What did shock a little was Cleveland taking Haden, there are reports that they were debating Kyle Wilson
with the selection as well and that Sheldon Brown may play free safety but Brown has proven to be a good
corner (while never proven anything at safety) and would make sense as a stopgap for now. With three 3rd
round picks and a deep class of corners they could have waited a little to grab one to develop behind Brown
and Wright. The pick here would have been best used on a pass rusher (Morgan/Graham) or defensive back Earl
Thomas who would give them a ballhawking safety which they truly lack. Jared Odrick might even have been a
solid selection here even though it'd be a slight reach. That kid is going to be a 3 down player in the NFL.

Oakland made a great pick, and found it's defensive leader for the next 10 years. Kirk Morrison is decent
as a middle linebacker, however he fits better outside. With the addition of Quentin Groves who is listed as
a linebacker now means Morrison is likely to be dealt over the next two days. Groves will likely play the
strong side. Oakland would be wise to trade up in the 2nd round for Charles Brown and not sit back and wait.

Buffalo had needs at 3 of the most critical positions on their roster (QB,LT,NT) and instead took a running back.
As good as Spiller may be, unless he is the next Chris Johnson ths pick is not the right one. The value on the 3
biggest needs on the team coupled with Fred Jackson's play means they could have waitied to grab a running back
a little later on and addressed a premium position first and foremost.

Jacksonville's selection means Gene Smith is now going to share the hot seat with Jack Del Rio. Alualu could have
been had by trade down. With whom ? How about Philadelphia ? They were working the phones to move up for Graham
so why not call and get the same deal Denver did ? Heck even taking one of the 3rds in next year's draft would have
been smarter than this reach. They have no 2nd round pick. With all of the top defensive ends on the board as well
as Dez Bryant and Earl Thomas, Jacksonville clearly came away as the day's biggest losers. Good luck selling season
tickets with that pick.

San Francisco got excited and moved up to address a huge need and clearly made a brilliant selection. Same can be said
for San Diego who feared Seattle taking Matthews and Philadelphia for improving the pass rush (especially with Washington
improving it's OL for McNabb and Dallas improving it's pass game). Seattle is another team who made a great pick, one
could argue the pick should have been Morgan here but Thomas will be a big help for their pass D.

The Giants also made a solid selection with Jason Pierre-Paul and with a plethora of pass rushers they have a little time
to develop him as opposed to hoping he can be a day 1 starter. The one issue I have is the hard stance they are taking with
Osi, hopefully they do an about face here and trade him should someone call with a fair offer.

Tennessee, San Francisco's 2nd first rounder, Pittsburgh and Atlanta all made solid selections as well. Houston at 20
surprised some by taking Kareem Jackson over Kyle Wilson. But Jackson's stock was soaring over the last month and he has
been called the most NFL ready corner in this class by some. He should really help solidfy the secondary. Cincinnati gave
Carson Palmer a new best friend which was a good pick as well.

Then Denver trades up 2 slots for Demaryius Thomas. Why ? Green Bay wasn't going to take him with Bulaga, Brown, Wilson,
Kindle and Mays still on the board and a deep stable of wideouts. I also don't think they would have traded out there or
anyone would have traded up to take Thomas ahead of Bryant. Speaking of the Packers, great value on the Bulaga pick and he
can play inside if needed this year and kick out to one of the tackle spots next year with the resigning of both Clifton
and Tauscher.

Can't argue with Dallas trading up. They really like Dez and are going to take the gamble here, perhaps JJ talked to
Deion and feels there are no issues to worry about. But this may mean the end of Roy Williams after this year unless he
steps it up.

Tim Tebow at 25 was another shocker. There was a lot of talk about someone trading into the bottom of of the first for him
but this pick like many are already saying is going to make or break McDaniels. Personally with drafting a DE to play OLB
last year (even though it is common in today's NFL) then reaching for Richard Quinn and now with trading up for a WR they
could have had 2 picks later plus trading for Tebow it just doesn't look good on paper. That's a lot of gambling that this
regime has done and they better pray they hit the jackpot because if not it will haunt them for a long time.

Can't even argue with Arizona's value pick at 26, crucial position and a need. This helps them out quite a bit, I bet Gerald
Hayes likes this pick a whole lot. New England followed with a great pick as did Miami and the Jets. Miami however maybe should
have taken Terrance Cody instead. If they can land a NT in the 2nd or 3rd then this pick looks even better but make no mistake
about it Odrick is going to be a great player.

Detroit Rock City continue with their incredible offseason by getting Jahvid Best. A home run threat and nice compliment to
Kevin Smith and an upgrade to the return game. Got to love Polian's pick for Indy as well.

New Orleans surpised here, but said the injuries they suffered last year played a major factor in this pick. One has to wonder
if this means Malcom Jenkins makes the full time move to free safety now. I thought they might take Everson Griffen, Segio Kindle
or Daryl Washington here.

The biggest story was Clausen not going at all. I don't think it is so much that teams didn't value him or like him so much as
it is teams drafted moreso for need for the most part and were content with their QB's (minus a couple who will address QB early
tonight). He received praise from Joe Montana, Steve Young and Jon Gruden, which says something and somebody is going to get a guy
who carries a chip on his shoulder now. The value will be tremendous.

St.Louis is probably fielding a ton of phone calls as is Minnesota and Tampa Bay (Tampa have 2 picks very early in the 2nd). I
would expect one or 2 trades right off the bat tonight. A little surprised that Tampa did not move up (at least as far as we know they
didn't try) but landing Dez Bryant would have been a huge deal to Josh Freeman and given them an even better day 1. If I am the
Vikings, I take either Clausen or Colt McCoy and start developing my QB of the future. Colt McCoy sure has a ton of potential
and someone is going to get a good QB with him.

The biggest winners were easily the Seahawks, 49ers and Detroit Lions. While the biggest losers were the Jags followed by Denver for the
time being.

Looking forward to a very exciting day 2!

Thanks for the analysis, Kris. Any concerns about Davis' reputation for having a questionable work ethic? I don't know anything about the guy aside from what I've read on draft sites and YouTube highlights, but I'm always concerned when a guy has that rep before he makes millions of dollars.

I wouldn't call Detroit a winner just yet. They have one of the worse lines in the league and they've done nothing to address it.

Originally posted by LA9erFan:
Thanks for the analysis, Kris. Any concerns about Davis' reputation for having a questionable work ethic? I don't know anything about the guy aside from what I've read on draft sites and YouTube highlights, but I'm always concerned when a guy has that rep before he makes millions of dollars.

Honestly, no. Why ? The 49ers brought him in and checked him out and granted that Anthony Davis is young and immature, I think between Singletary and Solari they will make him work for his spot on this team. I think we also have another someone to ride his ass in now team leader Vernon Davis, who can be a strong influence on the kid.

It would also not come as a surprise to hear him be told that if he doesn't put in the hard work that he can be replaced by Iupati whom by all indications the team feels can play right tackle. But at day's end I think Davis will prove his worth and be the mauler we want at RT.

Best First Round: Seattle
Worst First Round Denver

Clearly out of their minds: Jacksonville

Apparently Kindle's knee is messed up so that explains why teams passed him up. I honestly think that beside the Jags and Broncos that every team added good talent at good value to there rosters. Oh yea Chargers did go overbaord trading up that hihg but hey if that's who they wanted go get him.

On Haden I can understand the pick. Simply put you can't have enough top level CB's. Bengals and Steelers threw the ball alot last year and the Ravens massively upgraded there WR corp. Sometimes you have to scrap value and take the best player at the position. Brown is 31 so why not add some youth. I agree they could have went in other directions but I would have stuck with him over Thomas.

Originally posted by tjd808185:
I wouldn't call Detroit a winner just yet. They have one of the worse lines in the league and they've done nothing to address it.

Rob Sims is all they have done to date. But they can draft a tackle in the 3rd or 4th to develop, as they seem to really like Backus. He is a passable LT and they can probably get away with 1 more year with him at that spot. I also believe Burleson will help this team in keeping Stafford clean, with a better receiver opposite Megatron teams won't stack the box as much. With the addition of Scheffler, they can also use Pettigrew more often to stay home and block and help the line out.

They are winners IMHO because they got better in the return game and found a homerun compliment to Smith in the backfield all while adding another huge piece to the DL which is where Schwartz wants pressure to come from in his scheme. He prefers not to have to blitz the back 7 so much.

Originally posted by KRS-1:

Originally posted by tjd808185:
I wouldn't call Detroit a winner just yet. They have one of the worse lines in the league and they've done nothing to address it.

Rob Sims is all they have done to date. But they can draft a tackle in the 3rd or 4th to develop, as they seem to really like Backus. He is a passable LT and they can probably get away with 1 more year with him at that spot. I also believe Burleson will help this team in keeping Stafford clean, with a better receiver opposite Megatron teams won't stack the box as much. With the addition of Scheffler, they can also use Pettigrew more often to stay home and block and help the line out.

They are winners IMHO because they got better in the return game and found a homerun compliment to Smith in the backfield all while adding another huge piece to the DL which is where Schwartz wants pressure to come from in his scheme. He prefers not to have to blitz the back 7 so much.

Detroit's management staff is the only ones who believe Backus is passable at left tackle. Stafford is going to go down week 3 and all these weapons they're acquiring are going to be grounded.

Suh was a great pick, but for the 2nd year in a row they failed to address the line when they had a chance to do so instead going for the playmaker.

Originally posted by KRS-1:

Originally posted by LA9erFan:
Thanks for the analysis, Kris. Any concerns about Davis' reputation for having a questionable work ethic? I don't know anything about the guy aside from what I've read on draft sites and YouTube highlights, but I'm always concerned when a guy has that rep before he makes millions of dollars.

Honestly, no. Why ? The 49ers brought him in and checked him out and granted that Anthony Davis is young and immature, I think between Singletary and Solari they will make him work for his spot on this team. I think we also have another someone to ride his ass in now team leader Vernon Davis, who can be a strong influence on the kid.

It would also not come as a surprise to hear him be told that if he doesn't put in the hard work that he can be replaced by Iupati whom by all indications the team feels can play right tackle. But at day's end I think Davis will prove his worth and be the mauler we want at RT.

Good point, especially about Vernon. Hell, Vernon was young and immature not all that long ago too, but Singletary worked wonders with him. Hopefully he does the same here.

That being said, while Vernon was kind of a jackass and very immature, I don't remember him ever being considered lazy and he was never out of shape. That's a more concerning type of immaturity, IMO.

But from watching the video on both him and Iupati, I was impressed with both guys in terms of agility. Each guy has a TON of talent, no doubt.

Originally posted by Ninerjohn:
Best First Round: Seattle
Worst First Round Denver

Clearly out of their minds: Jacksonville

Gene Smith was just not thinking clearly. I would have been working feverishly to secure a deal with Philly all day Thursday afternoon since they wanted to move up so bad. Now this is a team with no 2nd rounder and still quite a few needs. Barring a miracle I think he cost Del Rio any chance at coming back and he may have put himself out of a job too. The Jags seem destined to be the AFC South cellar dwellers this year, and for a franchise who are struggling to put asses in the seats that is not good.

Best thing they actually could have done, would have been to trade this pick to Denver earlier in the offseason for Marshall.

What is really shocking for Jacksonville is that the 49ers tried to trade with them too - probably offering the same deal #13 and a 4th. Did they really think the guy would not be available 3 picks later? It seems like they fixated on getting the one player or their draft was a bust, which is a lousy way to run a draft.

It seems like the 49ers had the same mindset with Davis, but for them it only cost them a 4th round pick to grab him. And considering the state of our RT position, I can't blame them. For Jacksonville, there were a ton of DE on the board at 10 and 13, so you would think there would somebody at 13 that they would like, if the unthinkable had happened.

Originally posted by KRS-1:

Originally posted by LA9erFan:
Thanks for the analysis, Kris. Any concerns about Davis' reputation for having a questionable work ethic? I don't know anything about the guy aside from what I've read on draft sites and YouTube highlights, but I'm always concerned when a guy has that rep before he makes millions of dollars.

Honestly, no. Why ? The 49ers brought him in and checked him out and granted that Anthony Davis is young and immature, I think between Singletary and Solari they will make him work for his spot on this team. I think we also have another someone to ride his ass in now team leader Vernon Davis, who can be a strong influence on the kid.

It would also not come as a surprise to hear him be told that if he doesn't put in the hard work that he can be replaced by Iupati whom by all indications the team feels can play right tackle. But at day's end I think Davis will prove his worth and be the mauler we want at RT.

Kris, Very good post. I agree that coach sing and solari will work this kid and make him earn a starting job. Iupati could be the steal of the draft. Hes got a non stop motor and really good feet, he likes to crush people. Good draft for the 49ers, they could have a great OL for years to come. I can't wait to watch them play.

I'd say there was really only 2 winners & that was Seattle & us. Both teams had 2 first round picks & we both didnt f**k it up. Seattle got 2 sick players & we made a commitment to the O-line & our offense which i love that move. In a year our 2 we should have one of the top o-lines in the game.

Originally posted by fryet:
What is really shocking for Jacksonville is that the 49ers tried to trade with them too - probably offering the same deal #13 and a 4th. Did they really think the guy would not be available 3 picks later? It seems like they fixated on getting the one player or their draft was a bust, which is a lousy way to run a draft.

It seems like the 49ers had the same mindset with Davis, but for them it only cost them a 4th round pick to grab him. And considering the state of our RT position, I can't blame them. For Jacksonville, there were a ton of DE on the board at 10 and 13, so you would think there would somebody at 13 that they would like, if the unthinkable had happened.

Haven't heard that one....yet. But if true then it further proves their idiocy. Jared Odrick > Tyson Alualu, no question about that. And if they did like Alualu better did they really think they couldn't get him at 13 ?

Originally posted by fryet:
What is really shocking for Jacksonville is that the 49ers tried to trade with them too - probably offering the same deal #13 and a 4th. Did they really think the guy would not be available 3 picks later? It seems like they fixated on getting the one player or their draft was a bust, which is a lousy way to run a draft.

It seems like the 49ers had the same mindset with Davis, but for them it only cost them a 4th round pick to grab him. And considering the state of our RT position, I can't blame them. For Jacksonville, there were a ton of DE on the board at 10 and 13, so you would think there would somebody at 13 that they would like, if the unthinkable had happened.

wow, if thats true, then the jags are crazy. Can't blame the 49ers for making the trade as thats the guy they needed bad. I just would like to know why they made the trade, was someone else looking to trade up and grab Davis?